Whether you got a chronic illness before or after you began homeschooling, you can continue to provide quality education at home. Don’t let guilt keep you from doing what you love. By adjusting your routine/schedule accordingly, everything can be completed on time & completed to the best of everyone’s abilities.
- Do more when you’re able. Whether that means extra classes, extra study time, extracurricular activities, etc., will depend on when your ‘best days are’. Personally, I check the 5 day forecast. When a front is moving in & I know my pain will be at its worst, I can adjust our schedule. For example, if it’s going to rain Monday, I can have Phys Ed Friday.
- Ask for help. Is there an older sibling who excels at art? Ask them to participate with the younger students in a project of their choice. Can the other parent teach a class or two for you? What about Grandma? My mom loves to teach Bible & is fantastic at it.
- Utilize your resources. Make a folder for your bad days. Print out worksheets, math drills, vocabulary sheets, etc. Keep them all in one spot. When the pain/illness strikes, even if it’s unexpected, there will be quality activities for the children to complete.
- Don’t forget why you’re doing this. Don’t let your limitations overshadow all the quality time that you have with your kids. In twenty years, they won’t remember that you didn’t get the entire math done. But, they will remember the time you spent.
- Even brick & mortar schools have party days, field day, etc. Have one of your own. These schools also show movies about subjects so save your best videos to use when you’re in need of some rest.
- Don’t leave the kids in the dark about what is going on. Kids are perceptive. They know when Mom isn’t on her game. Be honest. Ask them to help you by doing their work & obeying.
Make the most of each day. Don’t be too hard on yourself. Just give it your best & let God handle the rest.
These are some excellent tips. We have three children with special needs and I have a disability (minor in the grand scheme of disabilities)- over the years I have learned to apply these same principals in our lives. I have learned to not sweat the small stuff and find a way to adapt.
These are great tips for home schooling parents. I want to but with my son having ADHA and ODD it is so very hard to just get him to do his 2 sheets of math homework every day. So home schooling would be like climbing a mountain.
I think it is awesome when parents choose homeschooling. My choice in that matter got taken away from me due to a failed marriage, but my hat it completely off to parents who homeschool and especially those who do it under the not most ideal circumstances.
I do not know if I could handle homeschooling my son. He has special needs. He loves school, plus he gets speech therapy at school!
Great tips for those who are suffering.